


Putting the Pieces Back Together

by thecompletebookworm



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV), Remember Me (2010)
Genre: Deals with grief and the death of a character already dead at the beginning, Eventual Romance, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, I'm sorry if my social work terminology is wrong, Spoilers for the last ten minutes of Remember Me, a canon death, anti Milah and anti Hook
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-12
Updated: 2016-01-11
Packaged: 2018-05-13 08:58:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,023
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5702605
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thecompletebookworm/pseuds/thecompletebookworm
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ally Craig, a social worker, is put on the case of one Bailey Gold who was with his mother and step-father when they were arrested.  She didn’t expect that her heart might be mended as she sought to grant full custody to the boy’s father.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Putting the Pieces Back Together

**Author's Note:**

> For anyone who just happens to stumble on this fic: This fic is based off the concept of Anyelle/Anyem from the Rumbelle fandom on tumblr. Our love of the actors means that if any of their other works ends with them unhappy/alone, there's a good chance there's a fic with a Bobby Carlyle character and an Emilie de Ravin character together. After watching Remember Me, I was a mess (with mixed feelings about the ending, because it was great from a story telling perspective, not so great for my fave characters.) Since Ally deserved happiness and it felt wrong for the story to play out any other way, I have mentioned into the land of Anyelle. This takes place roughly six years later.

June 16.  

Ally was far too aware of today’s date.  She had been dreading it for weeks.  She’d purposely made sure her last case had finished up before.  Ally couldn’t bear to fail at helping someone just because she wasn’t in her right mind.

And even now, all these years later, Ally certainly wasn’t in her right mind on June 16.  She could remember Tyler’s last birthday as if it were only yesterday.  Him dancing with his sister, Caroline, around the room.  The cheeky little smile Caroline gave them when he told her he liked his party.  Even washing the dishes reminded Ally of the time she and Tyler had attempted to do that together which had turned into full on water war. 

Happy memories.  That was really her problem with June 16.  The day reminded her of all the happy memories they had and all the moments they would have had if the planes hadn’t crashed.  There were years worth of happy memories out there for the both of them.  

Even though, Ally knew better than almost anyone that you can continue after a tragedy.  She’d be able to get back on the subway again, even if in this case that was simply a metaphor.   She’d sat down with enough families to know people are naturally resilient, but hearts can be quite the opposite. 

She headed out the door at nine, hoping to not be too caught up in the commuter rush, but also early enough that the Pearl Street Diner would still have bialy.    

“I was wondering when you’d get here.”  The friendly old waitress muttered as Ally walked in.  "Aidan was here earlier.“   

Ally couldn’t stop her mind from flashing back to that morning.  They’d been so happy.  The I-Love-Yous.  Aidan’s mutterings about french toast from his place in the next room over.  The peaceful existence that just seemed to exist with the three of them in that apartment.  

"I’d expect so,” Ally said, before digging in her bag for money for two coffees and three bialys.  

Tyler probably would have brought some home with him after the meeting with his father.  She could never understand why he liked them so much.   Ally clutched the bag closer to her as she left the diner, making sure to avoid the route that would lead her straight past the memorial.  She wasn’t allowed to cry until after she was at his grave.  That was the rule. It was a stupid rule, but at the beginning it was a necessary one to keep the tears at bay, to be able to finish up her social work degree, to stop expecting updates from her Dad whenever he had to go into the field.  Now the rule only seemed to come into play two days a year.  

Still, it was a relief to arrive at the cemetery.  Ally pushed open the slightly rusted gate and made her way to grave in Section I Row 23.  She could see Caroline’s painted rocks already.  Ally couldn’t stop her heart from clenching and even though she could fall apart now, she didn’t.   

She knelt to place the extra bialy on Michael’s tombstone before moving on to Tyler’s.  The two brothers, both only twenty-two when they died, were at rest here, together in death as they had been in life.  

Ally carefully placed her offering of coffee and bialy on Tyler’s tombstone.  She spread out her picnic blanket and laid on the ground next to the grave.  If she closed her eyes, it was almost like they were back on the beach on Labor Day, nestled together, everything peaceful.  Ally finally let herself cry.  She knew Tyler wouldn’t think she was odd; he would have understand the need to do just about anything to feel closer to your absent loved ones. She could see the sad smile on his face as he wrote in his journal to Michael and absentmindedly stroked the pages.  

Even just remembering those little details made the tears come faster.   A summer, they had had one glorious summer and now all  that was over, cut short by a plane, unexpected and unimaginable. Ally forced herself to take a sip of her own cup of now lukewarm coffee.  She couldn’t imagine going back to her life before Tyler, sheltered and unsure.  She would cherish their short time even if she felt cheated. 

The glaring ring of her cell phone cut through the extreme silence of the cemetery. A glance at the phone was enough to know that it was the office.  Since Ally knew Marian wouldn’t call unless there was an emergency, she took another swig of coffee and answered the phone.  

“I’m so sorry Ally.   I know it’s your day off and everything, but-”

“It’s okay.  I understand.  What’s wrong?”  

“I’m supposed to be presenting in court in an hour, but the cops just brought in a kid.  He’s shy, hiding under my desk right now actually.”  

Ally glanced at her watch.  “You said an hour?  Is there anyway you can stall just a little longer.  I’m on the other side of the city.”  

“Not that long but I can try.”   

“Okay I’ll be on my way,” Ally pushed herself off the ground and started putting her blanket away.  She wasn’t sure how much she could let herself mope around anyway.   “Can you tell me anything about the kid?”  

“There was a big arrest over by Washington Square Park.  We’re not sure on who the boy was with, but he was there, only thing anyone’s been able to get out of him was that his mother told him to wait there, and he wants his Papa.”

“So really young then?”

“I’d say about six, young enough to not understand completely what was going on, but definitely knows things are going wrong.”  

“What happened?”  

“Fighting, the assault of a passerby, possible drug involvement.”    

“I’ll be there as soon as I can.”  

Ally didn’t know as she left the cemetery, making sure to kiss the tombstone as she did.  Little did she know, the next time she visited her first love’s grave, her heart would be healed.  


End file.
